Post navigation

Officials at the state and local levels are in discussions about offering hepatitis C testing at all Kentucky county health departments.

Some local offices offered the tests last year as part of a pilot project, when Kentucky began to see a spike in hepatitis C cases related to intravenous drug use. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in May that Kentucky’s rate of hepatitis C is seven times higher than the national average.

Deputy Commissioner Kraig Humbaugh, with the Kentucky Department of Public Health, says increased screening opportunities would be a way for health and addiction experts to reach out to those who need help.

Officials at the state and local levels are in discussions about
offering hepatitis C testing at all Kentucky county health departments.

Some
local offices offered the tests last year as part of a pilot project,
when Kentucky began to see a spike in hepatitis C cases related to
intravenous drug use. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
said in May that Kentucky’s rate of hepatitis C is seven times higher
than the national average.

Deputy Commissioner Kraig Humbaugh,
with the Kentucky Department of Public Health, says increased screening
opportunities would be a way for health and addiction experts to reach
out to those who need help.

“The rate of acute Hepatitis C cases in
Tennessee has more than tripled in the last seven years, and the
steadily increasing number of cases may only represent “the tip of the
iceberg” of the state’s Hepatitis-C epidemic, according to TDH
Commissioner John Dreyzehner, MD, MPH.”

NASHVILLE (WATE) – The Tennessee Department of Health is issuing a
public health advisory urging residents to increase their awareness
about hepatitis C, a life-threatening disease spread by direct contact
with blood from an infected person.

The Knox County Health Department says it’s important to know all the
risk factors. Within the last year there’s been an increase of testing
for the virus at the health department. Director Dr. Martha Buchanan
says her staff will be looking at that data and determining what can be
done.

“The best protection you have is knowledge and knowing what behaviors and what things put you at risk,” said Buchanan.

“The rate of acute Hepatitis C cases in Tennessee has more than tripled in the last seven years, and the steadily increasing number of cases may only represent “the tip of the iceberg” of the state’s Hepatitis-C epidemic, according to TDH Commissioner John Dreyzehner, MD, MPH.”

NASHVILLE (WATE) – The Tennessee Department of Health is issuing a public health advisory urging residents to increase their awareness about hepatitis C, a life-threatening disease spread by direct contact with blood from an infected person.

The Knox County Health Department says it’s important to know all the risk factors. Within the last year there’s been an increase of testing for the virus at the health department. Director Dr. Martha Buchanan says her staff will be looking at that data and determining what can be done.

“The best protection you have is knowledge and knowing what behaviors and what things put you at risk,” said Buchanan.

The boom in heroin use paired with a surge in hepatitis C infections in Franklin County and
across Ohio have heightened worries about the spread of other diseases, particularly HIV, and
sparked conversations about a local needle exchange.

Hepatitis C, a treatable but sometimes deadly viral disease that attacks the liver, was
diagnosed in 719 people in Franklin County five years ago. The number had nearly doubled by last
year, to 1,369, according to data from Columbus Public Health. So far this year, the county is on
pace to record more than 1,400 cases. In just one year, the number of hepatitis C cases statewide
grew from 10,020 in 2013 to 15,887 in 2014.

Some of that most certainly is due to a push for testing at-risk baby boomers that has been
fueled by better treatments. But there’s little question among doctors and public-health leaders
that needle-sharing by people using heroin and other drugs is playing a role. Last year, 603 of the
cases in Franklin County were in people 34 or younger.

The boom in heroin use paired with a surge in hepatitis C infections in Franklin County and across Ohio have heightened worries about the spread of other diseases, particularly HIV, and sparked conversations about a local needle exchange.

Hepatitis C, a treatable but sometimes deadly viral disease that attacks the liver, was diagnosed in 719 people in Franklin County five years ago. The number had nearly doubled by last year, to 1,369, according to data from Columbus Public Health. So far this year, the county is on pace to record more than 1,400 cases. In just one year, the number of hepatitis C cases statewide grew from 10,020 in 2013 to 15,887 in 2014.

Some of that most certainly is due to a push for testing at-risk baby boomers that has been fueled by better treatments. But there’s little question among doctors and public-health leaders that needle-sharing by people using heroin and other drugs is playing a role. Last year, 603 of the cases in Franklin County were in people 34 or younger.

Maine is undergoing its worst acute hepatitis C outbreak since it
began recording cases in the 1990s. Reported cases of the disease have
soared since 2013, corresponding with skyrocketing heroin use, and are
more than triple the national average.

The heroin epidemic is causing many undesirable ripple effects in
Maine, public health advocates say, including the spread of infectious
diseases such as hepatitis C.

Acute cases – a six-month infection where symptoms manifest
themselves – more than tripled from 2013 to 2014, from nine to 31,
according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. At the same time, chronic hepatitis C – long-term infections that can
sometimes last a lifetime – increased 25 percent, from 1,142 cases in
2010 to 1,425 in 2014.

Maine is undergoing its worst acute hepatitis C outbreak since it began recording cases in the 1990s. Reported cases of the disease have soared since 2013, corresponding with skyrocketing heroin use, and are more than triple the national average.

The heroin epidemic is causing many undesirable ripple effects in Maine, public health advocates say, including the spread of infectious diseases such as hepatitis C.

Acute cases – a six-month infection where symptoms manifest themselves – more than tripled from 2013 to 2014, from nine to 31, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. At the same time, chronic hepatitis C – long-term infections that can sometimes last a lifetime – increased 25 percent, from 1,142 cases in 2010 to 1,425 in 2014.

The study is aimed at assessing the safety and immunogenicity of HCV prime-boost vaccinations ChAd3-hliNSmut and MVA-hliNSmut, administered intramuscularly in healthy volunteers and DAA treated patients. To read the entire study, click here Share This PageFollow Us … Continue reading → The post The study is aimed at assessing the safety and immunogenicity of HCV […]

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of DAA-based regimens in the clinical practice in HIV/HCV-coinfected patients. Hypothesis: The efficacy and tolerability of all DAA-based regimens in the clinical practice is different to what is … Continue reading → The post Real-life Security and Efficacy of DAA-based Therapy in 1,000 […]